3 things we clearly learnt about West Brom after their 2-0 win v Reading | OneFootball

West Bromwich Albion claimed a crucial three points yesterday afternoon as Matt Phillips and Taylor Gardner-Hickman struck to secure a 2-0 away victory over Reading.

The hosts failed to start the game well and were finally punished for this in the 25th minute when Phillips muscled his way past Nesta Guinness-Walker and had the simple task of firing the ball past Dean Bouzanis.

Even with that, the Baggies may have felt they should have been in an even stronger position at the break with Richard Beale’s men having a few decent chances to extend their lead.

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But they finally put the game to bed in the 72nd when Gardner-Hickman capitalised on Jeff Hendrick losing possession to rifle the ball home in front of the delighted away supporters.

The Royals did have a few chances to get back into the game but failed to be clinical enough in the end – and Alex Palmer also performed well in the latter stages to ensure the visitors travelled back to the Midlands with a clean sheet.

Looking back on this clash, we discuss three things we learnt about the away side following such a morale-boosting victory at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

Palmer is here to stay

Soccer Football – Carabao Cup – Second Round – West Bromwich Albion v Arsenal – The Hawthorns, West Bromwich, Britain – August 25, 2021 West Bromwich Albion’s Alex Palmer and Arsenal’s Alexandre Lacazette after the match Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers EDITORIAL USE ONLY

The hosts weren’t hugely threatening until the latter stages of the game – and that probably makes his performance all the more impressive because he was switched on when he needed to be.

Making multiple saves, he ensured that his side wouldn’t endure a nervy finish in Berkshire, picking up a confidence-boosting clean sheet and surely keeping himself as number one for their next game.

David Button’s goalkeeping has come into question at times this season, so this performance was a promising one from his competitor and Palmer could potentially establish himself as Albion’s number one for the long term.

With Sam Johnstone leaving the club in the summer, this is a position they arguably should have strengthened but their stopper today could persuade the Baggies against adding another option to this department in January.

Their experience at the back has paid dividends

Soccer Football – Premier League – Crystal Palace v Burnley – Selhurst Park, London, Britain – February 26, 2022 Crystal Palace’s Conor Gallagher in action with Burnley’s Erik Pieters REUTERS/David Klein EDITORIAL USE ONLY

As mentioned, Paul Ince’s side were reasonably quiet in front of goal for much of the afternoon but that shouldn’t take away from how good Dara O’Shea, Martin Kelly and Erik Pieters were at the back.

Lucas Joao and Andy Carroll must have been a handful to deal with in a physical sense, even if neither of them have a huge amount of pace to utilise.

Also considering the energy of Tom Ince, they did extremely well to keep a clean sheet and ensured Palmer didn’t have a huge amount of work to do until the final stages of the match.

The free-agent additions of Pieters and Kelly look to have paid dividends because of this – but keeping them fit will be key to how successful they are at The Hawthorns. They showed real promise yesterday though.

Soccer Football – Championship – West Bromwich Albion v Burnley – The Hawthorns, West Bromwich, Britain – September 2, 2022 West Bromwich Albion’s Taylor Gardner Hickman in action with Burnley’s Ian Maatsen Action Images/Matthew Childs EDITORIAL USE ONLY

His assist for Phillips’ goal shouldn’t go under the radar, with his switch of play enabling his teammate to get past Guinness-Walker and fire the ball home.

Previously a full-back, the Albion academy graduate has done extremely well to adapt to the midfield role and proved his worth not just for Phillips’ goal, but also for his own as he dispossessed Hendrick and struck the ball superbly.

Gardner-Hickman should be in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future if he can continue to put in excellent performances – because he has been held back at times unnecessarily.

And this is something for Steve Bruce’s successor to consider when he comes in.